I woke up this morning to the sound of pouring rain and gusts of wind. I had just resolved to stay under the warm covers for as long as possible when two little hungry munchkins crawled into bed with me, begging for french toast. We’ve been enjoying a healthier, whole food version of one of our favorite breakfast foods lately. It’s so quick and easy, so it’s perfect for weekday mornings when you feel like indulging in something delicious but don’t want to cook something terribly complicated.

Since the New Year, I’ve started following the 21 Day Fix nutrition and workout plan. It’s helped me get my nutrition back in check after the holidays, which has been a huge part of my goal to have a healthy third pregnancy. I love that I can enjoy a sweet and decadent treat for breakfast without derailing my nutrition plan for the day. The bananas make the french toast batter naturally sweet, and I use whole sprouted grain bread which is filling and contains protein. I enjoyed one slice of French toast drizzled with a teaspoon of maple syrup, alongside a serving of Greek yogurt and fresh fruit. If you’re following the 21 Day Fix plan, I counted one slice of this banana cinnamon french toast as 1 yellow, 1/2 a purple, and 1/2 a teaspoon. My whole breakfast with the yogurt and a handful of berries added up to 1 yellow, 1 purple, 1 red and 1/2 a teaspoon.

A healthy, easy French toast recipe that tastes like fresh banana bread.

Ingredients

1 large very ripe (spotted!) banana

2 large eggs

¼ c unsweetened almond milk

½ tsp vanilla extract

½ tsp cinnamon

⅛ tsp fine sea salt

4 to 6 slices whole grain bread

2 to 3 tsp coconut oil, divided for cooking

Instructions

Blend the first 6 ingredients (the banana, eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon and sea salt) until combined and smooth in consistency. I do this step in a blender, but you could use a mixer or mash the banana well by hand and stir to blend as smoothly as possible. You want the batter to be free of lumps. Pour the batter into a shallow dish or bowl.

Heat 1 tsp of coconut oil on a griddle or skillet over low-medium heat. Dip two slices of the bread into the batter being sure to coat both sides evenly. When using a denser bread like whole wheat or sprouted grain, be sure to let the bread soak in some of the batter for a few minutes. Gently lay the battered bread in your pan and cook until golden brown, for about 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Quiche. Breakfast casserole. Frittata. I wasn’t quite sure of what to name this recipe, but I promise that it’s delicious. And rather easy, despite what looks like a lot of prep work and steps. I’ve made several variations on this recipe over the past few weeks, but this combination of flavors has been our favorite. To make life even easier, I double the recipe and make two pans, so we can just reheat it all week. It makes a quick breakfast, or I like to serve it with a simple salad for lunch. The most time consuming part of this recipe is shredding the sweet potato – if you are lucky enough to find pre-shredded sweet potatoes at your grocery store, then by all means go that route. If I’m feeling lazy, I’ll use frozen shredded hash brown potatoes, which are tasty but not as rich in Vitamins A and C as sweet potatoes. Either way, don’t skip out on baking them first. This will give the potato layer a richer flavor and cook off some of their moisture, so your quiche won’t be mushy.

The baked potato layer will act as a crust for your quiche, and letting the edges brown will caramelize the sugars in the potatoes and make them taste richer and sweeter.

I topped the potato layer off with a combination of spinach, bacon, sautéed onions, and white cheddar cheese. Feel free to substitute or add any veggies that you enjoy. I prefer a combination of egg whites and whole eggs for the quiche batter, but I also make this with just egg whites and don’t really miss out on any of the flavor. Here’s the finished product, fresh out of the oven.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8x8" square baking dish or a 9" round deep dish pie plate with olive oil. Shred the sweet potato with either a food processor and shredding disk, or with the large holes on a standard box grater. Line a plate with a double layer of paper towels (or use a clean, lint-free towel) and spread the shredded sweet potato over it. Sprinkle with salt and leave for 15 minutes to allow the excess moisture to drain from the potato. When the 15 minutes is up, spread the potato over the bottom of your baking dish in an even layer. Bake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes, or until it is just starting to brown.

Meanwhile, fry the bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pan, drain and then crumble into a small bowl and set aside. Pour most of the bacon grease out of the skillet, leaving behind about 2 teaspoons. Add the diced onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the baby spinach leaves. Set aside until ready to assemble.

Whisk together the eggs, whites, sour cream, nutmeg and black pepper in a large mixing bowl. When the potatoes are out of the oven, spread the crumbled bacon, sautéed onions and spinach, and the shredded cheese over the potatoes. Pour the egg mixture over everything and bake for an additional 25 to 30 minutes, or until the eggs are set in the center. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

One afternoon last week, I found myself lingering in the light of the refrigerator door and staring at the assorted produce and containers of grilled protein, dreading dinnertime. I get into a rut sometimes when I’m cooking for just myself and the kids. Grilled chicken + bagged salad, leftover pasta, peanut butter & jelly….the dinner lineup could use some work now and then. I had purchased these enormous mushroom caps because they were on sale, and I imagined myself grilling them and turning them into portobello burgers. Since I had forgotten to buy rolls for said portobello burgers, my almost forgotten mushrooms were preparing to die a slow death in the produce drawer. Luckily, I rescued them while I was rummaging around in there and I had the idea to stuff them instead.

I wish I could say that the ingredients for the filling were an inspired combination and that I imagined them complementing each other perfectly. But no, I was really just using what I had on hand in my pantry and fridge. Spinach and artichokes are always a safe combination, and I figured that Greek yogurt would add some moisture and flavor to the filling. Shallots are pretty much my secret weapon for turning otherwise mundane dishes into something a little more interesting, and smoked paprika is a must have for this recipe. If you don’t keep it in your spice drawer, it’s worth picking up at the store and not just for this recipe. It has tons more flavor than regular paprika, and it adds a little more depth to spice rubs, chili and stews, and dips. These turned out to be something way more special and delicious than I imagined, and it’s definitely a bonus that they contain ingredients that are commonly stocked in your kitchen.

Clean, dry and remove any remaining stem and gills from each mushroom cap. The gills can easily be removed by scraping them out with a spoon.

Whisk together the balsamic vinegar, 1 tbs olive oil, salt and pepper. Place the mushrooms in a large baking dish and drizzle with balsamic vinegar mixture. Let marinade while you prepare the filling.

Chop the chicken breasts into small cubes and place in a large mixing bowl.

Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil a large skillet over medium heat, Saute the shallot and garlic until fragrant, about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the spinach leaves and saute until wilted, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the pan from heat and let cool slightly.

Fill each mushroom cap with about 1 cup of filling, packing firmly with a spoon or rubber spatula. Sprinkle the stuffed mushroom caps with a little additional Parmesan cheese if desired, and bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.

Last weekend, my fearless little girl hopped belly-first onto one of her new swings and immediately faceplanted onto the grass. I saw it happen out of the corner of my eye, but I was not fast enough to save her from falling. I get the sense that this will be a recurring theme in my life now that I have two toddlers roaming about and finding new ways to terrify me. When she looked up at me with sheer panic in her eyes and opened her mouth in a silent scream (all parents will know what scream I’m talking about – it’s the one that lets you know that this is serious and not a cry for attention), the blood started to flow.

After an hour of panicking, throwing my screaming toddlers in the bathtub in an attempt to find the source of the blood, confirming that the teeth were all still there but just a little loose, and consulting with various friends in the medical field, we decided to skip a trip to the ER and instead settled in for a weekend of popsicles, Tylenol, and cartoons. The bleeding subsided and everything seemed just fine, but I couldn’t help but worry that my daughter would be terrified of the new playset she had been so excited to help us build just a few weeks before this incident.

It only took about 4 hours before she was asking to go back outside and play on it. I’m so proud to be the mama of such a fearless, bubbly and tenacious little girl.

I’m decorating a new kitchen, guys! I’m beyond excited that we will be moving to a new home this summer, and construction on our new place should be underway by the end of this month. I’ve spent the last couple of weeks poring over paint chips and cabinet samples and drooling over all of the swoon-worthy houses on Houzz, which has quickly become my new favorite app. One of the most exciting moments so far in homebuying was hearing the Hubs give the go-ahead on some upgrades for my new kitchen, the best of which is a gas range! I have been dying for a gas range ever since I scratched the heck out of the ceramic cooktop at one of our first apartments with a cast iron skillet – oops! I can’t wait to cook fearlessly with cast iron and stoneware again, since every home we’ve rented has come with a smooth top range. You’ll have to forgive my steaks for not having a nice crust on them in the meantime, since it seems pretty much impossible to sear meat in nonstick pans on an electric cooktop. It’s been too cold to grill outside, but if anyone has suggestions for getting a better sear indoors, please let me know! On recipes that allow it, I’ve been dry rubbing marinated steaks with a seasoning blend that includes brown sugar before putting them under the broiler. This gives me the effect of a nice crust, but I don’t love having the added sugar.

I just made flank steak a week or so ago, for my steak fajita bowls, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the leftovers disappear very quickly over the next day. Leftover steak is usually a hard sell, and I tend to judge the success of a meal by the presence or lack of leftovers and how quickly they disappear. Since it was a success, I decided to try a more traditional herb and wine marinade. Again, the leftovers quickly disappeared after finding their way onto salads and sandwiches the next day. This is another easy dinner that requires minimal prep time. You just have to remember to marinade the steaks at least 8 hours before preparing them. We enjoyed our flank steak with a leafy green salad and herbed, roasted cauliflower and carrots.

Prep time does not include 8 hours inactive prep for the steak to marinade.

Ingredients

1½ lbs flank steak

½ cup dry red wine

3 tbs olive oil

4 cloves garlic

3 tbs fresh thyme leaves

3 tbs fresh parsley, chopped

1 tsp dry mustard powder

1½ tsp salt

¾ tsp black pepper

For the rub: salt and pepper, to taste, and 2 tbs brown sugar

Instructions

Trim any excess fat off of flank steak. Place in a large covered dish.

In a small food processor, combine the remaining ingredients to make the marinade. Pulse until the garlic and herbs are finely chopped. Pour the marinade over the flank steak, turning once to evenly coat both sides of the steak.

Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

When ready to prepare, preheat grill to medium-high heat, or preheat an oven broiler to 500 degrees. Remove steak from marinade and let drain. Pat steak dry gently with a paper towel to remove excess marinade. Combine rub ingredients in a small bowl and lightly rub onto both sides of the steak.

If grilling, grill steak on preheated grill for about 5 to 6 minutes per side. If broiling, place steak on a foil lined baking sheet or broiler pan and broil for about 12 minutes, flipping steak halfway through cooking time.

Remove steak from grill or oven and let rest for about 10 minutes to re-distribute the juices. Slice across the grain and serve.

I’m a big fan of crisp and colorful vegetables, so I tend to stay away from the canned, boiled, and steamed varieties. Roasting and sautéing are my favorite cooking techniques for veggies. These methods bring out the natural richness and flavor in foods with minimal effort, and they’re a great way to incorporate healthy fats into a meal when you use a good quality cooking oil. These zesty green beans are one of my family’s favorite sides since we all tend to enjoy spicy foods, but you can always omit the crushed red pepper if you don’t like the heat.

One of the unfortunate side effects of living with a food blogger is always having to wait patiently while about a hundred photos of your meal are being taken before dinner. I was losing daylight and patience quickly, so I got one lone shot of our perfectly roasted chicken before putting my camera away and sitting down to enjoy the meal with my family. I did, however, manage to instagram the Mini chowing down on a chicken wing for the first time:

Roasting a chicken looks like a much more impressive feat than it actually is. For myself, the hardest part is pulling out the gizzards before stuffing it – I’m pretty sure I’d be willing to pay extra for a chicken that didn’t come with all that mess. Luckily, the Hubs usually does that part for me, so I don’t lose my appetite before cooking dinner. Because it looks so impressive and is really so simple and effortless, this is a great meal to serve when having guests for dinner. Once you clean, stuff and season the chicken, it just goes straight into the oven and roasts for an hour. It’s also incredibly inexpensive and makes for a nice weekly dinner for the family that will give you plenty of leftovers for additional meal prep. Any leftover meat can be used for salads or casseroles, and you can boil any remnants (bones, the carcass??, I have no idea what to call this without sounding terribly morbid) to make all natural chicken broth. This is a fantastically easy meal to prepare, and you can fill the rest of your plates with simple sides like steamed or sauteed veggies and a baked potato or grain.

Remove the gizzards from the cavity of the chicken. Pat the chicken dry, place it breast side up in a large roasting pan or oven-safe skillet, and salt and pepper the inner cavity of the chicken liberally.

Slice the head of garlic in half, across the cloves. Slice the lemon and orange into thin slices. Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the garlic, herbs, and as many lemon and orange slices that will fit.

Gently rub 1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil evenly over the outside of the chicken, and salt and pepper the outside of the chicken.

Roast the chicken at 425 for 15 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 375 and roast for an additional hour, or until the skin is golden brown, the juices run clear, and the internal temperature of the meat reads 165.

Remove the chicken from the oven, cover it loosely in foil and let it rest for about 20 minutes before carving.

This month I plan to help answer one of life’s universal questions: “Mom, what’s for dinner?”

If your life is anything like mine, you don’t always have time to prepare an elaborate, well-planned and flawlessly executed meal. Nor do you want to spend all that time in the kitchen, when it would be much better spent snuggling with your babies, building blanket forts and lego castles, or dozing off during naptime. For the next few weeks, I will share the time-tested, Hubs and Mini approved dishes that are found on my dinner table even on busy, hectic weekdays. They aren’t terribly glamorous or exotic – they’re simple, easy and you probably have most of the ingredients in your pantry and fridge. Best of all, simple recipes like these made with “real” food are both healthy and delicious. If you’re doubting me, just check out these delicious, crispy baked potatoes.

A drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and fresh herbs are all that these potatoes need to be transformed into an exceptionally tasty side dish. You can use any small potato for this recipe, but I especially love these itty bitty baby Dutch yellow potatoes. They have a naturally creamy texture, so they stay moist and don’t need butter.

I like the combination of rosemary and freshly grated parmesan, but you can use any herbs and cheeses you have on hand. My Mini prefers these with cheddar, and I like to serve them with a dollop of nonfat Greek yogurt in lieu of the traditional sour cream.

Place the potatoes in a large pot and fill with water up to about 2 inches above the potatoes. Add the salt and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender.

Drain the potatoes carefully and place on a foil lined and lightly oiled baking sheet approximately 2 to 3 inches apart.

Using a potato masher, gently but firmly smash each potato until it has flattened evenly. Drizzle the smashed potatoes with the olive oil and sprinkle with rosemary, parmesan, and freshly ground black pepper.

Bake the potatoes in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until the tops and edges are brown and crispy. Serve warm with a dollop of nonfat Greek yogurt, if desired.

This month I plan to help answer one of life’s universal questions: “Mom, what’s for dinner?”

If your life is anything like mine, you don’t always have time to prepare an elaborate, well-planned and flawlessly executed meal. Nor do you want to spend all that time in the kitchen, when it would be much better spent snuggling with your babies, building blanket forts and lego castles, or dozing off during naptime. For the next few weeks, I will share the time-tested, Hubs and Mini approved dishes that are found on my dinner table even on busy, hectic weekdays. They aren’t terribly glamorous or exotic – they’re simple, easy and you probably have most of the ingredients in your pantry and fridge. Best of all, simple recipes like these made with “real” food are both healthy and delicious. If you’re doubting me, just check out these delicious, crispy baked potatoes.

A drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and fresh herbs are all that these potatoes need to be transformed into an exceptionally tasty side dish. You can use any small potato for this recipe, but I especially love these itty bitty baby Dutch yellow potatoes. They have a naturally creamy texture, so they stay moist and don’t need butter.

I like the combination of rosemary and freshly grated parmesan, but you can use any herbs and cheeses you have on hand. My Mini prefers these with cheddar, and I like to serve them with a dollop of nonfat Greek yogurt in lieu of the traditional sour cream.

Place the potatoes in a large pot and fill with water up to about 2 inches above the potatoes. Add the salt and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender.

Drain the potatoes carefully and place on a foil lined and lightly oiled baking sheet approximately 2 to 3 inches apart.

Using a potato masher, gently but firmly smash each potato until it has flattened evenly. Drizzle the smashed potatoes with the olive oil and sprinkle with rosemary, parmesan, and freshly ground black pepper.

Bake the potatoes in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until the tops and edges are brown and crispy. Serve warm with a dollop of nonfat Greek yogurt, if desired.

I love fajitas, but I usually shy away from preparing them at home because I think they are too time intensive for a weeknight meal. This recipe looks very involved, but I promise that it’s pretty easy and quick to make. A lot of the steps can be done well in advance, like marinading the meat and chopping up the veggies the night before you want to prepare this for dinner. I love recipes like this because they allow me to cook when I have a few free minutes in my schedule, which can be at any odd hour of the day or night with two little ones running around. When it’s time to serve, you can have everything on the table in just a few minutes. You can even make the avocado dressing in advance, but I like to make it right before serving so that the avocado stays a pretty green.

The Hubs and I were also pleasantly surprised at how delicious the leftovers were the next day. Leftover steak isn’t usually edible by my own personal standards, but I found that the marinade made the flank steak extra tender. I found myself guilty of sitting in my kitchen the next day, eating slices of steak dipped in the avocado dressing like it was chips and dip – it was that yummy! If you don’t plan on using the whole steak right away, I recommend only slicing off what you need each time you serve it – this helps to keep the leftovers moist in the fridge. This is another recipe that you can tailor to you and your family’s preferences. You can spice it up with some extra diced jalapenos or monterey jack cheese, or add any fresh veggies or mixed greens that you love!

In a food processor, combine garlic, cilantro, lime juice, ⅓ cup olive oil, one teaspoon of the cumin, chili powder, salt and black pepper for the marinade. Pulse until garlic and cilantro are finely chopped.

Place steak in a large covered dish. Place sliced bell peppers, onion, and mushrooms in a separate large covered dish. Divide the marinade equally between the steak and the veggies. Refrigerate for 4 hours to overnight, turning the steak halfway through marinade time if possible.

About 30 minutes before cooking the steak, remove it from the marinade. In a small bowl, mix the remaining teaspoon of cumin and the two tablespoons of brown sugar. Rub the steak with the cumin and sugar mixture. Let it rest on the counter on a plate or cutting board.

Prepare the dressing by combining the avocado, yogurt, cumin, chili powder, cilantro, garlic, jalapeno pepper (if using), salt and pepper in a food processor. Pulse until smooth and creamy. Add milk a tablespoon at a time, pulsing with each addition, until the dressing reaches your desired consistency. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat, or preheat an oven broiler to 500 degrees. If grilling, grill steak on preheated grill for about 5 to 6 minutes per side. If broiling, place steak on a foil lined baking sheet or broiler pan and broil for about 12 minutes, flipping steak halfway through cooking time.

Remove steak from grill or oven and let rest for about 10 minutes to re-distribute the juices.

While the steak is resting, prepare the vegetables. In a large saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat. Remove the peppers, onions, and mushrooms from the marinade, and add them to the saute pan. Saute for 8 to 10

minutes, or until the onions are beginning to caramelize.

To prepare the steak fajita bowls, layer the lettuce, sauteed vegetables, diced tomatoes, steak, corn, and black beans in large individual serving bowls. Drizzle each bowl with the avocado dressing. Garnish with additional lime wedges and cilantro leaves if desired.

Hello there.

I’m Jessica. I love chocolate, cooking, photography (so much that I have made it my career), fashion, interior design, working out, and my beautiful family. This is where I write about all of the things and people I love.